The secret of a healthy pregnancy is a balanced diet that, in addition to ensuring adequate weight gain for both mother and baby, prevents problems that often occur during pregnancy, such as anemia or cramps, for example, that can affect the quality of the mother and baby. Life.
The need for proteins, vitamins and minerals greatly increases during pregnancy and, therefore, it is important to eat more nutritious foods, so that the baby receives all the nutrients he needs to develop perfectly guaranteeing adequate mental development, avoiding a low birth. weight and even malformations, such as spina bifida.
- While the mother’s caloric requirements increase by only 10 calories per day in the first trimester.
- In the second trimester the daily increase reached 350 Kcal and in the third trimester of pregnancy reached an increase of 500 Kcal per day.
During pregnancy, to ensure the proper development of the baby and the health of the mother, it is necessary to ingest a greater amount of certain nutrients, mainly folic acid, magnesium, iron, iodine, zinc and selenium.
Supplementation of these nutrients can also be performed in tablet form, according to medical advice.
Other vitamins, such as A, C, B1, B2, B3, B5, B6 or B12, are also important during pregnancy, but their amount is easily reached with the diet and no supplement is required.
See also: natural vitamin supplements for pregnant women
If before becoming pregnant the mother had a normal weight, with a BMI between 19 and 24, she should gain weight between 11 and 13 kilos throughout the pregnancy, that is, a weight gain of 1 to 2 kg during the first three months of pregnancy. gestation, in the second trimester an increase of 4 to 5 kg, and another 5 or 6 kilos at 6 months until the birth of the baby, in the third trimester.
If the mother, before becoming pregnant, has a BMI of less than 18, the healthy weight gain is between 12 and 17 kg for the 9 months of gestation; on the contrary, if the mother is overweight with a BMI between 25 and 30, the healthy weight gain is about 7 kg.
Also see How to Ensure a Healthy Pregnancy After 30 Years: Care During a High-Risk Pregnancy.